Hiding a House in the Apocalypse - Chapter 93



Only Krnovel

50. Giant Tree (2)

Human nature doesn’t go anywhere.

Even this Park Gyu-man is like that right now.

No matter how high a position one holds or how far away one may travel, Park Gyu is Park Gyu.

The man named Jonnaenon is like that too.

He was a “spectator” in the good sense of the word.

Although his methods were somewhat mean and unscrupulous, he used his influence to benefit the greatest number of people, and gained fame and money in return.

According to the now almost-dead Jonnaenon antis, Jonnaenon used our community to make money, but that’s something they say without knowing anything about Jonnaenon.

From what I’ve seen online and in real life, Jon Nae-non is someone who wants applause more than money.

To be exact, he was a person who enjoyed and longed for the state of being supported by many others.

When John Nae-non created his masterpiece called Palenet, he acted like he had accomplished everything.

The sight of him standing in the light with his arms outstretched was clearly an action that only someone who had reached the end could show.

Yet he lived for several more months.

I once read in a newspaper that when a terminally ill person passes his or her sentence, the emotion he or she feels is more the question of why he or she is not dead than the relief that he or she is alive.

You must have felt doubts about the things that seemed like they would happen today or tomorrow.

Why don’t you die?

It must have felt strangely like I wasn’t going to die.

But perhaps his continued survival gave him time to think about other things?

For example, the version of himself he truly wanted to be, the version of himself he had lost in the past.

So, isn’t it that you miss the named zone?

Message from 171cm54kg13cm: Do you think this will make you feel better? I just can’t understand it.

SKELTON: (Zegal Skelton) Just do as I say. I’ll love it no matter what.

I may be treated as a weird and out-of-place person on the bulletin board, but when I was still active, I was known as an upgraded version of Jang Ki-young.

Instead of devising absurd strategies in such an old-fashioned way, we are proud to have extended the life of our old-school hunters by creating several novel strategies that are closer to innovation than conservatism and innovation, based on reality and data.

That’s Skeleton’s opinion.

There’s no way it wouldn’t work.

As expected, my idol, Jonnae-non, moved as I expected.

※John my thesis※(GOD) : lol

Reality is a cesspool, but on the Internet, a monster appeared on the Palenet bulletin board where people were arguing about who was great and what was not.

That user differed from the average user in several ways.

The first thing that stands out is its size.

While a normal user would use a font size of about 10pt, the monster that suddenly appeared was armed with a font size of about 100pt, which is 10 times larger.

Not only that, his nickname constantly flashed in rainbow colors like a neon sign.

Let’s imagine.

The impact of suddenly appearing on a bulletin board where everyone else was writing in the same color and same size font, with a user whose font was 10 times larger than everyone else’s and with a colorful sparkle I’d never seen before.

A user asked him – perhaps shivering –

ㅇㅇ(A13): GOD…? Who, who are you?!

※John my thesis※(GOD) : Haha

Immediately after his laugh, all users who accessed PaleNet reportedly received a single message that covered the entire screen.

※John Nae Non※(GOD): Hello? I am John Nae Non, the founder of PaleNet ^^

A giant appeared.

*

The second coming of Jonnae-non threw not only Palenet but also the Viva! Apocalypse! Korean bulletin board that produced him into great confusion.

Anonymous848: What the hell? Didn’t that kid die?

Anonymous458: He must have died, right? No, what happened?

Foxgames: Jonnaenon is the founder of Palenet? Really?

berkut_break : That guy who plagiarized it?

unicorn18 : Wow…

Dolsingman: This isn’t impersonation, is it?

RokaGG: Who would impersonate someone like that?

…

…

People who still have only bad memories of Jonnaenon seem unable to acknowledge his existence.

Well, I understand.

To be honest, even I, who was the most loyal supporter of Jonnaenon, could not have imagined that Jonnaenon would create PaleNet.

But the giant that appeared in Palenet is none other than Jonnaenon.

John_nenon: (John Nenon) Long time no see. Haha, ViaGe everyone.

I personally appeared on the Korean bulletin board and authenticated it.

Few people commented on his return.

Because they knew it too.

Of the many survivors left on this bulletin board, not many are qualified to comment on the post of the man who became light.

We kicked him out.

They were jealous of him and found fault with him to drive him off the bulletin board.

Even after he was gone, his contributions were not remembered and his value was often belittled.

But there are exceptions.

SKELTON: (Skeleton) You’re finally back! Your Majesty!

This is Skeleton, the last loyal subject of John Nae-non.

A faint smile flashed across my face.

As expected, he replied to me.

John_nenon: (John Nenon) Mr. Skeleton······.

SKELTON: (Skeleton) Dear John······.

It was a largely staged situation, and there was more going on than most people realize, but since the war began, has there been a more touching moment of reunion?

I don’t think there are any.

But there are too many people in this world who need to be killed.

mmmmmmmmm : What a fucking shit······.

dongtanmom: Yum yum… why are you like that… are you gay? Yum yum…

gijayangban : ?

Even if M9 puts aside the nickname, Dongtan Mom has a unique characteristic that makes her distinguishable from others.

This disgusting human clearly said with his own mouth that he doesn’t use his phone for internet or anything, but during this Failnet area code incident, he saw the so-called noble code next to his nickname and started munching on it as if it was nothing but a joke to other people.

Well, there’s a chance that the yum-yum lunatic isn’t Baek Seung-hyun.

But the way I see it, that yum-yum psychopath is 100% Baek Seung-hyun.

Or maybe all those yum-yum guys are mentally ill.

It is only natural that the thought process of the John Nenon that taught me is similar to mine.

※John my thesis※(GOD): You who are yummy over there!

ㅇㅇ(A02): Yum…?

※John My Comment※(GOD): You are permanently banned.

※John Nae No※(GOD) has permanently blocked ㅇㅇ (mobile phone number 35471E223)!

It was the moment when Yum Yum Man disappeared from Palenet forever.

That was the first move of the “god” who appeared in Palenet.

People were surprised by the sudden appearance of the Creator, but soon they gave thunderous applause.

ㅇㅇ(D13): Oh! It’s so cool!

ㅇㅇ(E01): It’s so cool! It’s so cool!

ㅇㅇ(A15): Thank you, Jonnaenon~ for making PaleNet~

ㅇㅇ(B22): If it weren’t for you, Jonnaenonnim, I might have really committed suicide. What joy would I have in living in this fucking world?

ㅇㅇ(C13) : John. My. Non! John. My. Non!

…

…

People who couldn’t even compare to our bulletin board praised Jonnaenon all at once.

The wave of praise was so great that it overloaded PaleNet’s high-performance servers, which had been noticeably reduced in population with each accident.

Even our bulletin board users who were critical of John Nae-non – perhaps out of inertia rather than thinking for themselves – are slowly starting to change their minds.

Anonymous458: Maybe John Nae-non wasn’t a great person?

Dies_irae69 : I am a guy.

Anonymous913: I’m seeing this person for the first time, but he created PaleNet. He’s really amazing. This bulletin board too.

RKKArA: I’m sorry for swearing at you before…

Defender: You’re really hitting on me.

dongtanmom: Please unblock me, Jonnaenon… Yum…

mmmmmmmmm : I can’t go to Jeju Island…

Foxgames: In my opinion, it’s 100%. He’s a great guy.

…

…

Perhaps even John Nae-non has seen this sight.

Maybe you’re shedding tears.

The giant that our bulletin board created after going around and around has finally returned to our embrace.

This is the real gamble I intended to make as “Zhuge Skelton”.

The rightful return of a user who deserves respect.

He can now close his eyes in peace.

*

I know from experience that things in life don’t always go as planned.

Controlling that instability is the strategy and the plan.

In that respect, my strategy was making a few mistakes.

The first mistake is the vitality of the argument.

※John my argument※(GOD): (John my argument) It’s tonight haha

※In my opinion※(GOD): (In my opinion) Today’s radioactive tuna omakase

※John’s Discussion※(GOD) : (John’s Discussion) The 3rd Part of the Secret Story of the Establishment of Palenet

….

…

Don’t die.

I’m sorry.

“no.”

I’m not trying to take issue with not dying itself.

Jonnaenon, who had become a god, was plastering his bulletin board with his own name.

Even all of his writings were sent to all users in the form of real-time messages.

God creating and destroying the world is something that could only happen in the imagination of humans, but in reality, Jonna-non is committing such foolishness.

But this was just a minor incident.

The real problem is something else.

ㅇㅇ(E32): Dear John, I have a favor to ask.

A user pleaded with Jonnaenon.

As you can see from the area code starting with E next to his nickname, he lives in a camp that is not known to be a very nice place on Palenet.

It was obvious what he was going to ask for.

ㅇㅇ(E32): I’m really sorry, but can you please remove this code? Honestly, PaleNet has become weird since this code appeared.

Delete the code.

The government requested that the code be removed.

It’s a difficult request.

It was obvious what would happen to Palenet if they disobeyed the government’s orders.

With no defensive forces and their location already exposed, the only fate left for that place is to be absorbed and dependent on others.

But John Nae-non was different.

He sent the entire message to all PaleNet users.

※In my opinion※(GOD): (In my opinion) Okay. I will delete the code.

PaleNet’s reaction was mixed.

People with area codes starting with A showed strong opposition to the Creator’s policy, while those without such codes cheered once again for the Creator’s decision.

But I know the story behind the code.

John’s decision to discuss the matter is commendable, but it carries risks.

He also knows that there is a possibility that his remaining life could be shattered.

So, I sent a message to John Nae-non’s subordinate.

SKELTON: Are you okay? I don’t think the country will let you stay still.

Message from 171cm54kg13cm: It’s really chaotic. I keep getting calls from the Information and Communications Department. They say if I refuse their policy, they’ll take back all my equipment.

Yes, that’s right.

John Nae-non’s decision was so dangerous that it could destroy the world he had created.

It was a direct contradiction to my wish that John would die in contentment.

Time passed and a day passed.

PaleNet users found that the stigma that had plagued them for so long was gone.

ㅇㅇ: What? The code is gone?

ㅇㅇ: Really? Where did you go?

ㅇㅇ: That bastard who made a fuss said he’d get rid of it, but did he really get rid of it?

ㅇㅇ: But why aren’t you doing a John Nae-Neon broadcast today?

…

…

The code is gone.

This means that not only is the hierarchical culture that has been eating away at PaleNet coming to an end, but that the creator of that world, Jon Nae-non, has declared a head-on challenge to the government.

I was worried so I sent a message to John Nae-non’s subordinate, but there was no reply.

“······.”

All sorts of thoughts came to mind.

Could it be that the soldiers have already swarmed the place?

Or did the soldiers themselves seize the equipment and take PaleNet by force?

What will happen to the hospital bed?

Wouldn’t it be soldiers in hazmat suits dragging him out and throwing him on the ground?

No, maybe the palenet itself will disappear.

The story is that the small ripple I created could lead to an absurd ending of destruction.

That day, I waited for a reply without eating or drinking.

“······.”

I thought about it for a moment.

I was thinking about sending a message to myself.

Since when did it start?

It was because he left himself behind and communicated with his subordinate.

It seems that the beginning was that John Nae-non wanted to communicate through his subordinates because he was unable to think normally these days.

Since then, as indirect communication through subordinates became entrenched, an invisible wall was built between us.

Maybe this was my intention.

History has proven time and time again that getting too close to an object of worship can actually lead to blasphemy.

But I couldn’t just stick to my strange stubbornness at a moment that might be his last.

So I broke the taboo and put my fingers on the keyboard.

Knock knock

I sent a message directly to the person who said it.

SKELTON: Mr. Hunter. Are you okay?

Hunter Park Gyu-ro, not bulletin board user Skeleton.

Surprisingly, I got a reply right away.

Message from John_nenon: Nope.

Message from John_nenon: I was thinking of you, Hunter Park. Haha

Message from John_nenon: I think it’s time to go.

SKELTON: Mr. Hunter······.

Message from John_nenon: Please take care of the rest of the world. Skeleton. No.

Message from John_nenon: Professor.

That was the last message I received from my role model, John Nae-non.

I sent him messages several times since then, but he never responded.

*

This is a story from the distant future.

I had a chance to hear the identity of the area code from Woo Min-hee.

“Oh, that code?”

Woo Min-hee burst out laughing and laughed loudly for a long time.

“They gave it out randomly. That. It doesn’t mean anything, but they divide it among themselves. Anyway. I said we are a people of hierarchy.”

But she also seemed to be unaware of the final outcome of the argument.

It’s not just her.

Even 171cm, a loyal subordinate of Jonnae-non, did not know much about Jonnae-non’s end.

He is so meticulous that he reflects the fact in his nickname whether he lost 1kg of weight or not. He answered my question as follows.

Message from 171cm53kg13cm: On the day the government official came, Mr. Jonnaenon told me that I had worked hard and that I could leave the server room. He said that he would take full responsibility for everything.

He also did not know the end of the argument.

However, one floating story vaguely describes the end of Jonnaenon.

According to the story, John Nae-non screamed as government officials in hazmat suits approached his basement:

“I am a hunter.”

As the government officials approached the lead-lined iron gate, Jon Nae-non detonated one of the nuclear batteries he had prepared in advance, turning his space, already filled with high-level radiation, into a place of death.

As the radiation counter screamed, John opened the door and revealed a world made of light to the soldiers.

In it he spoke with a smile brighter than light.

“I protect my world.”

It is said that he was holding two axes in his bare hands.

And now.

I see palenet.

ㅇㅇ: Where did John Naenon go?

ㅇㅇ: Is this fucking punk really dead?

ㅇㅇ: Well, just leave it. It’ll show up again if you keep doing that.

ㅇㅇ : ┏━━━━Collection Complete━━━━┓

ㅇㅇ: Give me back the code! I’m going to have to deal with beggars again.

ㅇㅇ :┗━━━━Orphan Collection━━━━┛

ㅇㅇ: The departure date for the second fleet will be announced soon.

The giant tree called Jonnaenon has fallen.

In the place where the giant tree fell, there are countless weeds, wild grasses, fungi, and mosses, each with their own circumstances, eating each other, pushing each other away, rejecting each other, and sometimes leaning on each other.

Prosper.